Its been a while. But I’m back and excited about the topic this week.
My cousin came over this past weekend and she’s growing out a short, short cut. She wants to continue to grow it long, but in the process she needed suggestions for maintenance and versatility. We are going to explore a technique that can incorporate both maintenance and versatility and still give you a finish you’ve been waiting for. So, the topic this week… “What can I do with my hair?”
I cater to the woman on the move. So the first issue I hear from a new client during a consultation is always maintenance. They want to know how to care for their hair at night or how style it differently so they can do less in the morning.
I currently offer an “At-Home-Training” session for my clients where I teach a group or an individual at home daily maintenance and styling quick fixes. I am going to give you some of that same information right here and now.
Whether short, medium or long lengths you should never over do your hair with heat. Using heat everyday….is over doing it. Part of daily maintenance is to keep your hair healthy. Using too much heat can lead to damaged hair. You want to achieve optimum hair health and learn to maintain it. Most people use heat daily because of what happens to their hair at night.
Tip #1 comes from my first post “To Cut or Not to Cut” . In ““ In the post I suggest using a satin or silk pillowcase at night. Satin and silk materials are woven tightly and don’t soak up your natural oils and can leave your hair in perfect condition in the morning, not all dried up. Cotton pillowcases not only suck your natural oils and moisture, but the loose woven material can also grab your hair and can cause breakage.
Wrapping is a popular technique in the community. I personally don’t like “wrapping” hair at night because I feel the hair lays toooooo flat and if your hair tends to be on the oily side, your hair can possibly can get too oily. I enjoy hair that is light in weight and allows for every strand to move separately.
Investing in a great hair cut can be considered Tip#2. With a great cut, little maintenance is needed. The days of having to force your hair into style with heat can disappear. (If you read my post “Dream Cut”, a great cut can take you a long way.)
The first two tips involved easy sleek maintenance. Lets throw some versatility into the mix for the third tip.
If you are a texture girl, or want to something new, Tip #3 is for you. Try a “carefree tousle”. If you have long hair, try pulling your hair into a ponytail at night and twist your hair until it in turns into a bun and secure with bobby pins. In the morning, take out the ponytail and let your waves flow. Hint: the tighter the twist, the smaller the curl. You can also try pulling your ponytail in different height positions to create texture at different levels creating different looks. If your hair is medium length, this can work for you to. Instead of the one ponytail, you can create multiple ponytails or twists.
Another technique for medium to short hair lengths would be to pin curl your hair at night and enjoy the texture in the morning. Keeping in mind that the smaller the pin curls, the tighter the curl in the morning. You can choose to pin curl your hair to the base creating a full curl or just the bottom for tuck or flip. In keeping with texture, if you’re a morning girl, try heat rollers when you get up and let them work for you while you dress.
Hope this helps! Let me know if you have any questions.
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September 24th, 2008 at 5:36 pm
Besides “wrapping” do you suggest any other technique for those who wish to maintain straight hair for the morning? Wrapping does tend to leave you hair on the flat side…
September 25th, 2008 at 12:43 pm
Try just lying down with the satin or silk pillowcase, you will be amazed.
December 22nd, 2008 at 9:36 pm
no i have short short short hair it barly reachs my colar and i have to go on a date on friday so how can i make my hair look long without putin any type of weave in it or how can at least make it look longer than it is please help asap please i need your help bad
December 22nd, 2008 at 9:46 pm
Hi Anonymous,
You can try hair clips. There are a great alternative to weaves. If your interested email me and i can give you details.
December 25th, 2008 at 8:55 pm
Now if you want your hair to look and stay healthy, you need to be sleeping on a satin pillowcase. I had heard a lot about them from friends and also from my stylist. She told me that cotton causes friction leaving you with split ends and frizzes. It also is naturally absorbent so it pulls the moisture from your hair and skin. I switched to a satin pillowcase and I’ve seen a huge difference in my hair and my skin. I don’t wake up with those pillowcase lines on my face in the morning. I found a website that has a page devoted to the benefits of sleeping on satin and they had some absolutely beautiful prints and solid pillowcases. I found a gorgeous pastel flower print. The company is A Touch Of Satin. If you’re interested, their website is http://www.atouchofsatin.com if you want to read about the benefits. Well, I hope this helps you out.
December 28th, 2008 at 12:26 pm
not all this tips, i mean shampoo or a conditional or maybe a cream chip enough for an eight years old girl to buy, that i can find in nigeria at least in the markets and quick growth very very very very very incredibly long and turns the colouur of my hair really really brown too.i hope you know what i mean and you know the right kind of shampoo or whatever ican use remember chip and i can find in nigeria i will be glad if you know the right thing for me to use you can send the name of the thing i can use throgh this email address;OOI@REPRESENTATIVE.COM thanks God bless.
January 7th, 2009 at 9:21 pm
I’ve grown to appreciate the benefits of satin pillow cases as well. Neero and Ana offer a great quality pillow http://neero-ana.com/
Also, can you offer any tips for women with natural hair? Specifically products that keep hair moisturized?
January 13th, 2009 at 5:54 pm
it’s saddening that you all want to conform to a typical white western idea of beauty with your straightened and curled hair. where’s the pride?
January 24th, 2009 at 2:03 pm
Excuse me, but as a biracial, PROUD Black woman I know that beautiful sisters come in EVERY shade and proudly rock a spectrum of different hair textures. Some of us are born with straight hair, some of us with wavy, kinky, curly, blonde, brown, red OR black hair. The way a Black woman decides to style her hair is a reflection of the creativity we as a people choose to display. Our beauty lies in our diversity and in our pride. We are the Original people anyway- why trip about whether or not a Black woman wears her hair natural, pressed, or permed? We should proudly wear our hair in whatever style it makes us feel comfortable and beautiful.
January 27th, 2009 at 2:43 pm
Hi Noel, I just got a short cut similar to Halle Berry’s long side burns spiky look. Ok, I am reading about the satin pillow cases so if I dont wrap my hair it should still be ok in the morning?
Thanks in advance and also for creating a site like this
Tiffany
January 28th, 2009 at 12:59 am
Hey Tiff
You are correct!
February 10th, 2009 at 9:44 pm
this is neat
March 20th, 2009 at 3:36 pm
Hey Michael, thanks for the heads up on A Touch Of Satin. I followed your recommendation and I went to their website. They do have beautiful satin pillowcases. I bought a set and I love them. My hair isn’t dried out like it always been and my skin feels better. Thanks again, and I just LOVE THIS SITE!!!!!!!!
April 20th, 2009 at 4:30 pm
hey my hair is falling out because of past braids and perms I cannot even put it in a wrap and i dont have the money to see professional halp is there anything i could do at home.
May 16th, 2009 at 10:37 pm
Noel,
When I sleep on my satin pillowcase without wrapping my hair I wake up in the morning with my hair all over my head. The style is gone (my hair is cut in a layered bob) so I have to pull out the flat irons to put it back in style. So my question is: how do I style my hair at night while sleeping on my satin pillowcase so that it will not lose it’s style?
July 14th, 2009 at 8:35 pm
Dear Anonymous,
Check your satin pillow case’s brand. Sometimes….they are considered satin…but are really a fake satin. Also, if you are a sweater…this may not work for you…as satin has not breathing room.
July 14th, 2009 at 8:36 pm
Dear Seannea,
Try using Nioxin and maybe visiting a hair school. They have inexpensive assistance and have professional to watch over the students.
August 30th, 2009 at 2:54 am
im 14 turnin 15 this year…im african american and im kind of new to getting my hair flat ironed…i go to the salon to get it done…my hair goes down my back … i wrap it at nite nd spray it with oil sheen…but i play basket ball for my school in the spring….so in the spring i dont kno how to teat my hair….i wash it gel it and it stays in a bun til summer …..wat shuld i do??
October 16th, 2009 at 2:43 pm
HEY, MY hair is thin, soft, kinky and short. I’m trying to let it grow natural. I don’t know what to do with it. Please help
October 16th, 2009 at 5:48 pm
My hair is cut short in the back, i wrap it at night, but in the morning when i comb out my hair, it sticks up in the back, how can i get it to lay down?
November 8th, 2009 at 6:17 pm
Noel, where can I find the hair clips.
December 21st, 2009 at 10:59 pm
Hi Khadijah,
Sorry it took so long for your response. Gel is a bad idea if it is heavy in alcohol. Try a light weight wax or “tacky” product like Bed Head’s Manipulator. Try wearing it natural and embrace your natural curl. There’s some really great curly hair products of there. Check out some of me recommendations in my blog “Choosing the right product for your hair”
December 21st, 2009 at 11:01 pm
Toni,
Do you use a satin or silk pillow case at night? You can try a mix of a very light weight wax and light hairspray. KEY WORDS “LIGHT” if it is too heavy it will lift up more. Sometimes it may simply be to heavy in product. In that case, try a dry shampoo.
December 21st, 2009 at 11:02 pm
Trina,
Where r u located?